What is synthetic research?

Synthetic research uses AI-powered personas that simulate how real buyers, customers, or market segments would respond to your research questions. It produces directional signal — insights to sharpen your hypotheses — before you invest in real primary fieldwork. Gather Synthetic runs AI-moderated interviews across any audience archetype in minutes, not weeks.

How is synthetic research different from real research?

Synthetic research generates directional signal using AI personas, while real primary research collects data from actual people. Synthetic pre-research is faster (minutes vs. weeks), cheaper, and ideal for hypothesis generation and stakeholder alignment. It is not statistically valid and should be used to focus and prioritize real fieldwork, not replace it. Gather offers both synthetic pre-research and real AI-moderated interviews with actual respondents.

What types of research can Gather Synthetic run?

Gather Synthetic supports 14 study types: Brand Perception, Product Feedback, Concept Testing, Competitive Intelligence, CX/NPS Deep Dive, Messaging & Claims Testing, Win/Loss Analysis, Market Segmentation, Pricing Research, Ad & Creative Testing, Customer Journey Mapping, Feature Prioritization, Churn & Retention Analysis, and Audience Discovery.

How much does synthetic research cost?

The first 5 synthetic interviews are free. After that, B2C audience interviews cost $0.50 each and B2B audience interviews cost $5.00 each. There is no subscription required.

How accurate is synthetic research?

Synthetic research is directional, not statistically accurate. Confidence scores reflect internal AI response consistency, not statistical significance. Quantitative projections carry a ±15–20% margin of error. Treat findings as educated hypotheses to validate with real primary research, not as definitive measurements.

← All brands

B2B commerce & wholesale buying · PUBLIC RESEARCH BRIEF

ShopifyWill wholesale buyers reorder without calling their rep?

Shopify presents B2B commerce alongside direct-to-consumer selling, with company profiles, catalogs and self-service ordering. Its help center explains that catalogs control product access and pricing, with capabilities varying by plan. The research opportunity is to separate a merchant’s enthusiasm for consolidation from a wholesale buyer’s willingness to use the storefront.

Sources checked 2026-09-19 · Simulation results not yet generated

Test a question in Gather ↗Explore fictional demo →

CHANGE ONE THING. LEARN WHAT MATTERS.

Three questions for the GTM team.

For Shopify B2B, would a demonstration of a buyer placing a repeat order or one of a merchant managing B2B and consumer operations earn a stronger evaluation? Ask ecommerce leaders and wholesale sales leaders separately, using the same product facts and avoiding assumed cost savings.

Set up this study →

What would make an existing wholesale buyer place a routine repeat order through a Shopify B2B storefront rather than contact a sales representative? Hold available products, agreed prices and service terms constant. Separate familiar reorders from exceptions that still need human help.

Set up this study →

For a Shopify B2B pilot, would explaining minimum quantities and order increments earlier in the buying journey help buyers complete an order correctly? Treat the placement and wording as proposed changes, not existing product behavior, and test understanding before assuming conversion improves.

Set up this study →

PROPOSED AUDIENCE

Who should weigh in?

North American brands and distributors with 200 or more employees evaluating wholesale ecommerce. Include ecommerce owners, wholesale sales leaders and operations administrators, plus purchasing staff at their business customers. Analyze merchant buying committees and wholesale shoppers separately; neither group represents the other.

TWO TIME HORIZONS

Trial today. A habit tomorrow?

Near term · 0–90 days

Over 0–90 days, test a realistic reorder with eligible buyers and an accurately configured catalog. Observe whether buyers find the correct items, understand quantity requirements and finish without assistance. Separately record whether the merchant’s buying committee approves a bounded pilot.

Longer term · 3–12 months

Over 3–12 months, examine repeat self-service use, exception handling and the continuing role of sales representatives. Investigate whether buyers return to manual ordering when assortments or account terms change. Channel switching should not be mistaken for incremental demand.

What would make the result actionable?

Use consented account-level order histories, storefront task observations and support contacts. Compare equivalent reorder cohorts and distinguish new purchases from orders moved out of email or phone. A business case requires actual setup, integration, support and transaction costs, with no lift inferred from simulated buyer counts.

A Gather simulation returns hypothetical customer reactions. Quantifying revenue, traffic or retention needs actual business inputs and validation against observed behavior.

Public sources

Shopify B2B commerce product overview ↗Current product page; checked 2026-09-19

Shopify help: B2B catalogs and pricing ↗Current product page; checked 2026-09-19